Background information
ABB and the railway industry
Powering the world’s high-speed rail
networks
The high-speed rail sector is undergoing
huge and rapid growth. Widespread traffic
congestion and concerns over carbon
emissions are causing many countries to
reassess their transportation policies and
turn increasingly to rail. High-speed trains are
particularly effective at taking pressure off
short-haul flights and bringing cities closer
together.
Today, Belgium, France, Germany, Italy, the
Netherlands, Spain, the United Kingdom,
China, Japan, Korea and Taiwan all have
high-speed lines in operation. Many other
countries, including Brazil, India, Morocco,
Russia, Saudi Arabia and the United States,
either have high-speed rail systems under
construction or under development. Within
the next few years, the world’s high-speed
rail network could quadruple from 10,739
kilometers in 2009 to around 42,000 km in
2020.
ABB is playing a major role in the development
of the world’s high-speed rail systems,
providing cutting-edge power technologies
and solutions for both railway infrastructure
and high-speed rolling stock.
What is high-speed rail?
The International Union of Railways (UIC) defines
high-speed rail travel as 250 km/h or more. Typical
attributes of high-speed trains are:
- The use of trainsets rather than conventional
locomotives and car formations. These offer better
power-to-weight ratios, aerodynamic profiles, more
space for the passenger, as well as reliability and
safety.
- The use of dedicated high-speed lines on at least
part of the journey. Such lines are built to sustain high
speeds through the special design of transverse
sections, track quality, catenary, power supply, and
so on.
- And, the use of advanced signaling systems,
including in-cab signaling.
High-speed rail electrical infrastructure
ABB is the world’s leading supplier of traction power
supply products and systems for the rail industry. We
design, engineer, manufacture, install and
commission a complete range of electrical
technologies that ensure the efficient, reliable and
safe supply of electric power to high-speed lines.
Our product portfolio includes traction substations
that feed and distribute power to the lines; static
ABB ISI Rail Trade Press Relations, P.O. Box 2095, CH-1211 Geneva, Switzerland
Phone: +41 (0) 58 586 22 11 | Fax: +41 (0) 58 586 26 82 | www.abb.com/railway
frequency converter stations that convert the power
to the correct current and frequency; power quality
systems that protect the network and the
surrounding grid from voltage disturbance; network
management and SCADA systems that monitor and
control the rail and power distribution networks; and
high-end expertise like system analysis and dynamic
traction power supply simulations.
Among these many ABB technologies are three that
are proving particularly beneficial for high-speed rail
power supply.
Static frequency converters
Electric railways require huge amounts of energy.
Many rail network operators run their own high
voltage power grids, and some even operate their
own dedicated power plants. Few railways are totally
autonomous: they have to exchange power with the
high voltage grid. For historical reasons, there are
often significant differences between rail electrification
networks and national power grids. Some rail
networks use direct current (DC) rather than the
alternating current (AC) of the grid; others operate at
a different frequency or use only single phase
compared to the three-phase power of the grid.
The technology that makes power exchange
between grid and rail system possible is power
conversion. In the past, rotary converters were used,
but in recent years static frequency converters based
on power electronics have replaced the old
technology. ABB delivered the world’s first railway
static frequency converter in 1994. Today, there are
more than 1,000 megawatts (MW) of static frequency
converters in operation in rail networks, and an
additional 800 MW on order. Many of these are in the
15-20 MW range. The world’s largest and most
powerful converter system is rated at a massive 413
MW, which ABB is currently delivering to the German
network (see page 4 under ‘Germany.’)
One of the four ABB converter units that make up the world’s most
FACTS for power quality
Modern traction systems present demanding
challenges to power grids. Trains taking power from
the catenary require stable supply voltages. Voltage
and current imbalances need to be confined in
magnitude and prevented from spreading throughout
the grid. And voltage fluctuations and harmonics
need to be controlled and kept within stipulated
limits.
Power grids that feed railway systems and rail
traction loads benefit enormously from flexible AC
transmission system (FACTS) technologies like static
var compensators (SVC) and the more recent SVC
Light (also known as STATCOM – static synchronous
compensator). These technologies were pioneered
by ABB and provide an extensive range of benefits
for rail systems and power grids, including
dynamically balancing non-symmetrical loads,
mitigating voltage fluctuations, eliminating harmonics,
and providing power factor correction and dynamic
voltage support. ABB FACTS solutions for highspeed rail are currently in operation in France, the
United Kingdom and Australia.
Transformers for high-speed rail networks
More than 100,000 ABB vacuum cast coil dry-type
transformers are currently in operation around the
world today. Around 1,600 of these, with individual
power rating of up to 16,000 kVA, are installed in rail
networks, either for substation distribution or traction
power supply. The latter application requires an
especially robust technology. ABB’s hi-T Plus
transformers can operate at much higher
temperatures (hence, hi-T Plus) and have a longer
service life than conventional vacuum cast coil
transformers, thanks to the use of materials with
class H thermal insulation (the highest). This enables
them to withstand strong overloads, high harmonic
distortion and high unforeseen temperatures. Highspeed rail networks in Spain and Switzerland are
among those that rely on hi-T Plus technology (see
‘Spain’ and ‘Switzerland’ on pages 5 and 4
respectively).
High-speed rolling stock traction equipment
ABB is the world’s leading supplier of electric
propulsion technologies for high-speed rolling stock.
We supply the traction transformers, traction
converters and traction motors that power many of
the world’s high-speed trains, as well as the auxiliary
converters that distribute the power to the train’s
onboard applications. Our high-speed rail portfolio
includes a complete range of low voltage products,
semiconductors, circuit breakers and surge arresters
that feed, control and protect the train’s onboard
power distribution system.
powerful converter system. Located in Germany, each unit has a
rated power of 103 MW
ABB has strategic alliances for the development and
supply of propulsion equipment with most of the
ABB background information | Powering the world’s high-speed rail networks 2
world’s leading train manufacturers, including Alstom
Transport, AnsaldoBreda, Bombardier Transportation,
CAF, Siemens Mobility, Skoda, Stadler Rail and Talgo.
Traction transformers
ABB has been manufacturing traction transformers
for over 100 years. More than half of the world’s
locomotives and trainsets are powered by ABB
transformers, and the vast majority of the world’s
train manufacturers and rail operators rely on them.
The traction transformer is a key component of the
train’s onboard traction chain. Its function is to
transfer electrical energy from the catenary to the
motor by reducing the network’s high voltage to low
voltage (for example, from 25 kV AC to 750 V AC) for
use by the converters. Traction transformers have to
be compact, lightweight and exceptionally reliable, as
they are often a non-duplicated traction component.
And, in some parts of the world like Europe, they
have to deal with multiple voltages and frequencies
due to the different electrification systems in use in
different countries or different parts of the same
country.
ABB is supplying traction transformers for the highspeed trains of Alstom, AnsaldoBreda, Bombardier,
CAF, Ministry of Railways China, Siemens Mobility
and Talgo.
operating costs (see ‘Germany’ on page 4).
Traction motors
The traction motor is an electric motor that powers
the driving wheels of a railway vehicle. ABB has been
manufacturing industrial motors for more than 130
years and traction motors for more than 100 years.
Over recent decades ABB has delivered an estimated
30,000 traction motors for all types of rolling stock
applications, including high-speed rail.
In 2010, ABB launched a new modular motor that is
especially designed for high-speed and regional
trains. Traditionally, traction motors are among the
many custom-made components required by train
manufacturers. These motors are intensely
engineered, which impacts their cost, lead time and
ease of maintenance. ABB’s new ‘one platform,
multiple designs’ concept overcomes these
obstacles by meeting the diverse requirements of
customers from a single modular platform. The
motors are built to customer specifications by
combining a set of standard components into a vast
number of possible product configurations. They also
feature a new electrical design that is optimized for
high energy efficiency and a competitive
performance/weight ratio.
ABB’s traction transformers are used in Siemen’s Velaro high-
ABB’s new modular traction motor is designed for regional and
speed platforms
high-speed trains
Traction converters
ABB is one of the few independent suppliers of
traction converters and complete traction chain
packages for rail vehicles. The traction converter is
the intelligent link between the power supply from the
catenary and the traction transformer on the one
hand, and the traction motors that power the vehicle
on the other. It provides the exact voltage wave
patterns for the traction motors to control their speed
and torque and the energy flow to the wheels.
Traction package
The transformers, converters and motors that make
up the propulsion systems are critical to the
performance of high-speed rolling stock. Even
though ABB is not a train manufacturer as such, ABB
supplies complete traction packages that offer the
best overall solution and optimization in terms of
cost, reliability, weight, size and energy efficiency.
ABB traction converters are used onboard all types
of rolling stock, including high-speed trains. One of
the most impressive recent orders is a mid-life
refurbishment solution for the power cars of
Deutsche Bahn’s ICE 1 high-speed trains. The
solution delivered a raft of benefits for DB, including
substantial reductions in energy consumption and
National high-speed rail networks
ABB is playing a significant role in the development of
high-speed rail electrical infrastructure and rolling
stock in most of the world’s high-speed rail networks.
Below is a country-by-country guide to how ABB
solutions are supporting utilities, rail operators and
train manufacturers in order to overcome the
technical challenges of high-speed rail.
ABB background information | Powering the world’s high-speed rail networks 3
Germany
Germany has an extensive high-speed rail network,
with links between major cities as well as to five of its
neighboring countries: the Netherlands, Belgium,
France, Switzerland and Austria.
ABB is currently delivering the world’s largest rail
converter station at Datteln in northern Germany.
Ordered by E.ON, one of the world’s largest energy
companies, the 413 MW converter station will
replace existing rotary converters that have reached
the end of their operating life. The converter station
will receive power at 50 Hz from a nearby power
plant and feed it at 16.7 Hz into the 110 kV rail
network. As the Datteln node is one of the most
important supply points in the entire German rail
network, a very high level of availability is vital to rail
operations. The ABB solution consists of four
independent converter stations, each with a rated
power of 103 MW. The built-in overload capability
ensures constant power supply, even if one of the
four converter stations is not in service.
In rolling stock, ABB is providing the traction
transformers for Siemens Mobility’s new flagship
high-speed train, Velaro D. National rail operator
Deutsche Bahn has ordered 15 eight-unit Velaro D
trainsets for operation on international routes across
four countries (France, Germany, Belgium and
Switzerland) using four different power supplies. ABB
has incorporated a number of design innovations to
reduce the weight of the transformer and extend the
maintenance intervals. The combined effects of these
features make a significant contribution to the Velaro
D achieving an operating speed of up to 320 km/h,
while carrying 20 percent more passengers than its
predecessor and consuming only 0.33 liters of
gasoline equivalent per person per 100 km.
Service and refurbishment is a key component in
ABB’s high-speed offering. Deutsche Bahn’s first fleet
of high-speed intercity express trains, ICE 1, was
built in the early 1990s. In 2005 it was decided that
the trains were in need of extensive refurbishment.
Deutsche Bahn selected ABB to replace the old
GTO-based traction converters with modern IGBT
converters, while leaving all other components of the
traction chain and all interfaces unchanged - the first
time this had ever been performed on high-speed
trains. The converter, developed within just 13
months, cuts energy consumption by at least 15
percent and reduces operating costs per train by
around $140,000 a year. The old power modules
weighed 300 kg and were almost 1.5 m in length.
ABB’s new IGBT modules weigh less than 35 kg,
have much smaller dimensions and can be handled
by one person without lifting tools, thus simplifying
service.
Switzerland
Switzerland is currently expanding its high-speed rail
network to link up with those of neighboring
Germany, Italy and France. The focal point of this
large federal project is the construction of the
Lötschberg and Gotthard base tunnels, which run
several hundred meters below existing tunnels.
The 34.6 km Lötschberg base tunnel opened in
December 2007. The tunnel supports the western
transit link between Basel on the German border and
Milan in northern Italy. ABB supplied the 50 Hz power
distribution system for the entire tunnel infrastructure
- lighting, signaling, communications, ventilation and
air conditioning – as well as the 16.7 Hz traction
power supply system that is designed to power up to
six locomotives and freight trains of up to 1.5 km in
length simultaneously. The solution includes a
SCADA system and 314 cast coil dry-type
transformers from 100 to 2,500 kVA.
REF 542plus is providing fault protection in the Gotthard tunnel
For the 57 km Gotthard base tunnel, which is
scheduled to open in 2017 and will be the longest
rail tunnel in the world, ABB is supplying a power
distribution solution that will provide exceptional
levels of reliability, availability and safety in the
demanding operating conditions of the tunnel
system. The tunnel system will consist of two tunnel
tubes, one for each direction, linked every 325
meters by 40 m crossways that serve as escape
routes. The ABB power equipment is located in
these crossways. It has to withstand large variations
in pressure caused by trains speeding past at 250
km/h, and unusually harsh operating conditions – salt
deposits, brake dust, soot, and abraded material.
ABB is also supplying 875 units of ZX0-type gasinsulated switchgear and 500 units of REF 542plus
protection and control devices.
Italy
ABB was recently awarded an order to provide 100
traction transformers for the V300ZEFIRO very highspeed train that Bombardier has developed in
partnership with AnsaldoBreda. Known in Italy as the
ABB background information | Powering the world’s high-speed rail networks 4
ETR 1000, the V300ZEFIRO has a capacity of 600
passengers and is capable of commercial speeds of
up to 360 km/h.
Spain
Spain has the largest high-speed rail network in
Europe, and the third largest in the world after China
and Japan. By 2020, some 90 percent of Spain’s 46
million inhabitants are expected to live within 50 km of
a station served by AVE (Alta Velocidad Española)
trains operating at speeds of up to 350 km/h. ABB is
extensively involved in supplying solutions for both the
high-speed lines and the rolling stock.
Bombardier’s V300ZEFIRO trains, also known under the name of
ETR 1000 in Italy, are fitted with ABB traction transformers.
Source: Bombardier pictures press
Each trainset will be equipped with two underframemounted ABB traction transformers with integrated
cooling systems. Ten of the traction transformers
will be able to operate under four different electrical
systems, enabling the trains to run cross-border
services. ABB’s traction transformers were chosen
for their slim, compact and lightweight design,
factors of paramount importance for very highspeed trains. The order follows the successful
operation of 110 traction transformers and 280
traction motors on the ETR 500, which ABB
delivered to Bombardier Transportation in 2004 and
2005. The traction transformers enable the ETR 500
to operate in two different power supply systems
(25 kV/50 Hz and 3 kV DC) and at speeds of up to
300 km/h.
ABB is also supplying the traction transformers for
the 25 very high-speed AGV trainsets that Alstom is
supplying to the Italian private rail operator, Nuovo
Trasporto Viaggiatori (NTV). The trains will begin
operating on three routes in Italy later this year
(2011). The AGV is designed to enable rail operators
to fully customize their trains. This in turn required
ABB to design a modular traction transformer
platform that is capable of being customized to
meet all operator requirements. This, while
maintaining the usual ABB transformer attributes of
compact footprint, low weight and performance
excellence.
France
The Alstom AGV trainsets that NTV is scheduled to
start running in Italy in 2011 are the first commercial
deployment of Alstom’s new generation of very
high-speed trains. In 2007 the AGV set a new rail
speed record of 575 km/h on a test run in France.
The record run was designed to test the
performance and reliability of infrastructure and
material under extreme conditions. ABB was a
principal partner of Alstom in the development of
AGV technology, providing the traction transformer
that is now such a key component of the AGV traction
chain. The AGV is 35 tons lighter and consumes 15
percent less power than the preceding TGV
generation. By designing a compact and lightweight
transformer that can be mounted under the floor and
operate at any voltage in any part of Europe, ABB
played a crucial role in the development of this recordbreaking train.
ABB supplied the traction transformers for the AVE
S-102, S-112 and S-130 trains that Talgo and
Bombardier have jointly developed for the AVE
network. Known outside of Spain as the Talgo 350,
the trains are designed to operate at speeds of up to
350 km/h. Forty-six trainsets, each equipped with two
ABB traction transformers, have been delivered to
date. A total of 45 Talgo 250 trainsets , each powered
by two traction transformers, are currently operating
on AVE services in Spain at speeds of up to 250 km/h
and at two different voltages and on variable gauges.
ADIF, which owns and operates the Spanish rail
network, signed a frame agreement with ABB in 1990
for the supply of substation transformers for the entire
high-speed rail network. To date ABB has delivered
around 140 distribution and traction power supply
transformers for the ADIF-operated network. Most
recently, ABB was selected to supply all the
transformers for the Barcelona-Figueras section of the
high-speed line that will link Madrid with the French
border. The contract was awarded by a Siemens/
Inabensa consortium, and is for six 60 MVA power
transformers that will be installed in substations along
the new section.
United Kingdom
London is connected to Paris and Brussels via the
High Speed 1 rail link. Formerly known as the Channel
Tunnel Rail Link, the 108-kilometer high-speed line
runs from London St. Pancras to the British side of the
Channel Tunnel. The line was completed in 2007,
enabling trains to travel at speeds of up to 300 km/h
before entering or leaving the tunnel on their way to or
from Paris or Brussels.
EDF Energy, the transmission system operator for this
part of the U.K. power grid, selected ABB to provide a
traction supply package that would enable the trains
to run reliably at high speed without impacting power
ABB background information | Powering the world’s high-speed rail networks 5
quality in the surrounding grid. The solution consists
of three 400/33/25 kV feeder substations and four
2x25 kV autotransformer stations that feed and
distribute power along the entire High Speed 1 link.
Two static var compensators (SVCs) are installed at
each of the feeder substations to maintain the
power factor at unity, provide voltage support in
case of a feeder substation outage, and mitigate
harmonics. A seventh SVC provides dynamic load
balancing to prevent the high-speed rail network
from impacting the nearby Cross Channel HVDC
power link (high-voltage direct current) between
England and France.
lines will be completed, as well as a web of intercity
passenger connections between developed and
densely populated areas. The total operating rail
network will exceed 120,000 km, more than 60
percent of which will be electrified. And the total length
of high-speed passenger lines will surpass 18,000 km,
almost half of which will be 350 km/h lines.
By 2020, when the medium- and long-term targets of
the program are achieved, China will have created the
world’s fastest and most technologically advanced
high-speed rail system.
ABB is playing a leading role in this unprecedented rail
development program by providing critical power
technologies for both rolling stock and the electrified
rail systems on which they run.
ABB traction transformers first entered the Chinese
railway market in 2004 when they were selected for
Bombardier’s Regina trains, known in China as
CRH1A and CRH1B 1. In 2009, Bombardier Sifang
Power won a further contract to supply the Chinese
Ministry of Railways with 80 Zefiro 380 very highspeed trains. More than 1,000 Bombardier-design rail
cars are being built for China’s new high-speed
railways, and ABB is supplying the traction
transformers for all of them.
Dynamic load balancer at Sellindge near the British coast and
Channel Tunnel
Other major European routes
ABB supplied the traction transformers for the 12
AnsaldoBreda trainsets that operate on the
Amsterdam-Brussels route at speeds of up to 300
km/h. The line opened in 2009 and connects
Amsterdam to other major European cities like
Cologne, Paris and London. Each trainset is
powered by four ABB traction transformers that
enable the trains to operate in three different power
systems: 25 kV AC, 3 kV DC and 1.5 kV DC.
ABB traction transformers are also powering the
new Alstom Pendolino high-speed trains that link
Helsinki, the capital of Finland, with St Petersburg in
Russia. Each of the four trainsets is equipped with
two traction transformers that allow the train to
switch smoothly between 25 kV and 3 kV DC power
systems. They are specially designed to operate in
the harsh winter climate of this part of Europe at
temperatures of minus 40 degrees Celsius.
China
China is in the midst of a huge rail investment
program, upgrading conventional railway lines and
constructing tens of thousands of kilometers of
high-speed passenger lines.
Within the next 10 years, a cross-country network
of four north-south and four east-west passenger
ABB traction transformers can also be found on some
of Siemens Mobility’s Velaro high-speed trains. Known
in China as the CRH3-380, these trains are capable of
service speeds of up to 380 km/h. In 2009, ABB was
contracted by Datong Electric Locomotive Co Ltd to
deliver traction transformers for the CRH2 (a modified
E2-1000 series Shinkansen design from Japan) and to
manufacture traction transformers for the CRH5
electric multiple unit (EMU) trains manufactured by
Alstom and Changchun Railway Vehicles. Also in
2009, ABB was selected to upgrade the traction
transformer design for the Kawasaki-derived CRH2380, an EMU train capable of speeds of up to 380
km/h.
Traction transformers are not the only power products
supplied by ABB for China’s high-speed networks. For
the Wuhan-Guangzhou high-speed rail project, ABB
supplied a series of products, including its 27.5 kV
ZX1.5-R and 10 kV ZX0 gas-insulated switchgear, as
well as the SAFE-series SF6 insulated switchgear that
is used in the railway signal system power supply. The
ZX1.5-R switchgear was specially designed at ABB
China’s medium voltage technical center to address
the highly specific power supply requirements of
China’s high-speed railways. The switchgear uses up
to 70 percent less space than conventional
switchgear. Insulation is provided by SF6, which is well
known for its remarkable physical characteristics,
especially its excellent insulating capacity. With fewer
maintenance requirements, customers are able to
ABB background information | Powering the world’s high-speed rail networks 6
lower their total investment and operating costs.
ABB is also contributing significantly to China’s future
development of high- and very high-speed rail by
setting up the ABB Electrified Railway Training Center
in cooperation with Beijing Jiaotong University. ABB
has donated advanced railway traction equipment to
the center, which will provide teaching, research and
training facilities for Ministry of Railways’ personnel
and university teachers and students.
For more information:
ABB Railway portal: www.abb.com/railway
ABB Review special edition on railways and
transportation: www.abb.com/review
ABB background information | Powering the world’s high-speed rail networks 7